Notes on Making the Americas — 3 Act Play

Definition: Mercantilism is a government policy that a country should export more than it imports (balance of trade).
Roles in the colonial system:
- Colonies were to provide the raw material.
- Mother country provides finished goods.
Economic aim: Build a favorable balance of trade to accumulate wealth and power for the mother country.
Key idea to remember: The colony exists to support the mother country’s economy, not solely for its own independent development.

Purpose/why they were enacted:
- Not all raw materials of the colonies were going to England; the Acts aimed to regulate and control colonial trade.
Impacts:
- The Acts did benefit both England and the colonies by creating a structured trade system under English regulation.
Enforcement realities:
- Some colonies, notably Massachusetts, ignored the Acts and continued illicit trade.
Core concept to capture: Regulation of colonial commerce to ensure raw materials flowed to England and that English ships and merchants benefited.

Major change: England revoked Massachusetts’ charter and made it a royal colony.
Territorial scope: By 1688, all of New England to New Jersey was combined into the Dominion of New England.
Governance: Sir Edmund Andros was appointed governor.
Policy outcome: The Dominion cracked down on Massachusetts and centralized control over the region.

Mercantilism: Economic policy favoring export over import to build national wealth.
Balance of Trade: The difference between exports and imports; an economy aims for a positive balance.
- Formula: $ext{Balance of Trade} = ext{Exports} - ext{Imports}$
- Positive balance condition: ext{Exports} > ext{Imports}
Navigation Acts (1651): Laws to regulate colonial trade and ensure key goods went through England.
Dominion of New England (1685): A royal administrative union of several northern colonies to tighten control over colonial governance and enforce trade laws.
Sir Edmund Andros (Andros): Governor appointed to oversee the Dominion and enforce Crown policies.

150 years: Period during which the colonies received limited attention from England (stage setting).
1651: Passage of the Navigation Acts.
1685: Establishment of the Dominion of New England.
1688: Union of New England colonies into the Dominion of New England (extending toward New Jersey).

Mercantilism set the framework for colonial economic policy, prioritizing the mother country’s wealth and control over colonial commerce.
The Navigation Acts sought to channel colonial trade through England, aiming for mutual benefit but also restricting colonial autonomy and creating tension.
The Dominion of New England represented a drastic administrative consolidation and increased Crown intervention, contributing to growing colonial resentment and laying groundwork for later resistance.

The policies reflect the tension between imperial regulation and colonial autonomy.
Economic controls contributed to political and social friction between colonists and the British Crown.
These episodes foreshadow later colonial responses to imperial policy and set the stage for debates about self-government and taxation without representation.